Chapter 2

Gao Tang Town, relying on Donghu City, has convenient transportation and a developed economy, resembling a small city. However, its forestry resources are quite scarce, and both its fiscal revenue and extra income are quite limited. In stark contrast to the grand and imposing police station just dozens of meters away, the forestry station appears somewhat dilapidated and desolate.

Luo Yuan walked into the first-floor hall, where the service windows were cold and empty. A few civil servants were either playing card games or chatting. He glanced around and then headed straight for the second floor!

The station chief's office was empty, so Luo Yuan had to knock on the deputy station chief's office.

"Come in!"

He pushed the door open, and sitting in the office was a slightly overweight middle-aged man with heavy bags under his eyes, giving him a somewhat swollen appearance. Seeing Luo Yuan enter, he quickly glanced at him and asked, "What do you need?" Then he immediately focused on the documents on his desk.

This feeling of being ignored made Luo Yuan somewhat uncomfortable, but he still forced a smile and said, "Hello, I am Chen Weiqiang's brother-in-law. Yesterday, he and the city bureau's Director He came to Gao Tang Town for an inspection, but they haven't returned yet. My sister asked me to come and ask if you know where they went?"

The middle-aged man finally lifted his head, his face showing obvious surprise. "Director He and Xiao Chen haven't returned? Wait, I'll make a call."

He stood up, took out his phone, and kept dialing. The sweat on his forehead increased more and more. After a few minutes, he finally sat down dejectedly.

"Where did they go yesterday?" Luo Yuan couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

"Yesterday, Director He, Mayor Xia, Station Chief Wang, and Xiao Chen went to inspect the mountains after lunch. They should have returned yesterday. Have you called Xiao Chen? You must be mistaken; maybe they went somewhere to play." He said, panicking.

Luo Yuan felt a jolt in his heart, sensing a bad premonition.

He quickly said, "My sister has called several times already. This morning, I went to the city forestry bureau and asked the leaders there, but Director He hasn't returned either. They are likely still in the mountains. The most urgent thing now is to get the police station to help search the mountains!"

"Right! Right!" He nodded repeatedly. If the city bureau's leaders and the deputy mayor and station chief had problems, not only would the town government criticize them, but his position as deputy station chief would also be at risk. He quickly stood up and made a call.

"Hello!"

"Chief Xie? I'm Cao Minghua from the forestry station... Yes, yes... I'll come to your office... It's hard to explain over the phone... I'll be right there!"

He hung up the phone and said, "Let's go, come with me to the police station!"

Luo Yuan and Deputy Station Chief Cao quickly left the forestry station and headed toward the nearby police station.

Ten minutes later, Deputy Station Chief Cao led Luo Yuan into the chief's office and recounted the entire situation. Chief Xie felt a chill run down his spine. He stood up, dissatisfied, and said, "It's almost a day and a night, how did you only notice now?" Seeing Cao Minghua's grim expression, he waved his hand and said, "I'll call Secretary Zhao first!"

He took out his phone and walked out of the office. When he returned, he had a serious look on his face. "Wait for news here. I'll send a few people to search the mountains and bring them back."

"Good! Good! Thank you, Chief Xie!" Deputy Station Chief Cao nodded heavily and got up to leave.

Luo Yuan saw that he wasn't needed anymore, but he couldn't let this happen. Without his personal involvement, how could he complete the task? He quickly said, "Chief Xie, I want to go too!"

"The mountains are dangerous, and we don't have the resources to protect you. Wait here patiently," Chief Xie frowned and refused.

"I know the mountains are dangerous, but my brother-in-law is missing. How can I wait here calmly? Besides, I've practiced martial arts for some time and won't be a burden," Luo Yuan said, feigning excitement.

Chief Xie looked at Luo Yuan, noticing his tall and muscular build, clearly a result of regular exercise. He might be helpful in the mountains, so he said, "Alright, but you must follow orders!"

"I promise to follow orders!" Luo Yuan quickly said.

Chief Xie then made another call, "Captain Chen, gather three people and stand by, then come to my office!"

After hanging up, it wasn't long before a slightly dark-skinned, lean middle-aged man walked into the office. "Chief, you called me?"

"Yes, put your current work aside. This is urgent. Some city leaders and Mayor Xia are missing in the mountains. I need you to go in and find them immediately."

His face changed slightly, and he became serious. "I'll go right away. Chief, do you have any other instructions?"

"Yes, this is Luo Yuan, a relative of one of the missing persons. He wants to go too. Take him with you!"

He glanced at Luo Yuan and said, "Alright, I'll leave right away!"

He then coldly told Luo Yuan, "Follow me!"

The two walked out of the office, and in the corridor, three people were already waiting. Two men and one woman, all under thirty.

Luo Yuan's eyes naturally fell on the beautiful woman first. She wore a light blue short-sleeved police uniform, with a slender waist and a high chest. Her police skirt revealed a pair of long legs in flesh-colored stockings, extremely alluring. She looked like a ripe peach, exuding a tempting aura.

"This must be the allure of a uniform," Luo Yuan thought to himself and then looked away.

The other two, one was tall and about thirty, with a pockmarked face and a buzz cut, looking more like a bandit without the uniform. The last one had a youthful face, seemingly a new police officer.

"Captain Chen, what's the task today? Why are you in such a hurry?" the buzz-cut man asked casually, without much respect.

"We'll talk about it later. Everyone, change into long-sleeved uniforms, prepare your weapons, and get ready to go into the mountains. Wang Fei, find a set of clothes for Luo Yuan; he's going too." He glanced at the buzz-cut man and instructed the young officer.

"Yes, Captain!" Wang Fei immediately responded and turned to Luo Yuan, "Follow me. Your build is similar to mine. Do you mind wearing my clothes?"

"Of course not. Thank you!" Luo Yuan smiled and asked, "Officer Wang, did you pass the civil service exam this year?"

"Ha, no, I didn't pass, but I graduated from the police academy and got a job through connections. If I do well and earn merit, I can be promoted to a regular officer. For now, I'll just work here," Wang Fei said with a smile.

"That's not bad. At least the benefits shouldn't be lacking!"

"More or less, just getting by," Wang Fei said, but there was a hint of pride in his tone. He took out two police uniforms and two pairs of police boots from the closet and threw one set to Luo Yuan.

The recent weather had been warm and humid, and the long-sleeved shirt had been stored for a long time, giving off a slight musty smell, but it was still clean. When Luo Yuan finished changing, the buzz-cut man walked in and patted his head, "You have a bit of a police officer's aura. Where are you from, and why are you going into the mountains?"

Luo Yuan was slightly annoyed but moved his head away without showing it, smiling, "My brother-in-law is missing in the mountains. I'm going to look for him. By the way, my name is Luo Yuan. How should I address you, Officer?"

"Call me Zhao Qiang." Zhao Qiang realized he had annoyed the young man and grinned, "Don't mind it, it's just an old habit! By the way, who is your brother-in-law?"

"From the city forestry bureau," Luo Yuan said vaguely. He didn't want to engage further with Zhao Qiang and turned to Wang Fei, "Can I have a gun for self-defense? I heard the mountains are dangerous."

"Guns can't be given out casually; it's against the rules. Absolutely not!" Wang Fei shook his head.

"Then can I have a knife? I can't go into the mountains unarmed!" Luo Yuan asked, hoping for a compromise. This was an F+ mission, and without a weapon, it would be very dangerous.

"Alright, I'll ask Captain Chen!" Wang Fei said and left the changing room.

A moment later, he returned, "No guns, but you can have a knife. There are many confiscated knives. I'll take you to the storage room!"

The two went to the storage room at the end of the corridor. Wang Fei opened a large box, and inside were various short weapons: pocket knives, watermelon knives, daggers, fruit knives, machetes, and butchering knives—essentially a collection of civilian cold weapons.

"Pick one!" Wang Fei said generously.

Luo Yuan thought about the snakes and vines in the mountains. A dagger would be of little use, and a watermelon knife would be too light. After some consideration, he chose a machete suitable for chopping.

Luo Yuan swung the machete a few times in the air, testing the feel. It felt good, and he mentally assessed it. A set of information immediately appeared in his mind.

"Sharp Machete."

"Material: Alloy."

"Rarity: White."

"Weight: 2.5 kg."

"Sharpness: 10-15."

"Requirement: Strength 9."

"Description: A modern agricultural tool, suitable for clearing land and cutting wood. It can also be used to cut people, though it is of average quality. The blade is sturdy and good for chopping!"

Not bad, much sharper than the kitchen knife at home. "I'll take this one!" Luo Yuan said.

"Let's go! Captain Chen is waiting for us," Wang Fei said.

The two walked out of the first-floor door, and Captain Chen and the others were already sitting in the police car. Luo Yuan quickened his pace, opened the door, and got in. The car started and headed out of town.

Soon, the police car left the main road and turned onto a small path, with greenery stretching as far as the eye could see, undulating continuously.

"Is this farmland?" Luo Yuan asked uncertainly. The fields were overgrown with lush weeds, some of which had grown to over a meter tall, completely obscuring the color of the soil. The wind blew, and the weeds swayed like a green ocean.

"Seems so," the female police officer in the passenger seat also said in surprise, "I remember coming here a few days ago, and the weeds weren't so tall. How did they grow so fast? They're almost reaching the cement road."

"If the weeds are like this here, the mountains must be even harder to navigate. How can you take on such a task, Captain Chen? We might end up missing too!" Zhao Qiang laughed.

"Yes, I heard it's dangerous to go into the mountains now," the female police officer added.

"What good will it do to tell Chief Xie? What's the point of telling me?" Captain Chen said with a grim face, feeling somewhat frustrated. Recently, the number of missing persons had sharply increased, with five people missing, most from the villages at the foot of Zhushan. He knew the dangers of Zhushan well, but what could he do? It was a task assigned by the chief, and he had to carry it out.

"The mountains can't be that dangerous, right? Besides, we have guns. We can handle large animals like wild boars," Luo Yuan interjected, hoping to stop the discussion before the police decided to turn back.

At this point, everyone realized there was a family member of a victim present!

"Alright, no more discussion. We are police officers; we don't back down at the first sign of trouble. We have to climb the mountain, but if it's too dangerous, we'll return. That way, we can still explain the situation. What do you think, Luo?" Captain Chen said.

"No problem. If we are in danger, my brother-in-law is probably..." Luo Yuan said in a low voice.

That's the best we can do. We'll take it one step at a time. If it's too dangerous, we'll have to abandon the mission, even though it will cost a lot of experience points. But it's better than risking our lives, Luo Yuan thought to himself.

Half an hour later, the car arrived at a remote village and stopped.

Luo Yuan got out of the police car and looked ahead. It was a dark green, undulating hill, with a height difference of less than 200 meters. Despite this, the less than 200 meters made Luo Yuan feel slightly oppressed.

"It's almost eleven. Let's have lunch first and go up the mountain in an hour!" Captain Chen looked at the hill and then at his watch, then walked toward a small restaurant by the roadside.